Andy Puddicombe
Andy Puddicombe is the co-founder of Headspace, a popular app that teaches simple, 10-minute meditation techniques. Puddicombe began learning to meditate at the age of 11, and traveled to Asia in his early twenties to become a fully ordained Buddhist monk at a Tibetan monastery in the Indian Himalayas.
Books by Andy Puddicombe
The Headspace Guide to Meditation and Mindfulness
by Andy Puddicombe
One of the Five Books rules is that you shouldn't recommend your own book. At the same time, the people we approach to interview are supposed to be leaders in their fields, so often it's a shame not to mention their own books. Our interview about meditation, with Andy Puddicombe, is a case in point. Andy is the co-founder of Headspace, an app which is trying to bring meditation to everyone. It even turned Bill Gates from a skeptic into a believer in meditation. We spoke to Andy about his favourite books, including the book that inspired him to shave off all his hair and become a Buddhist monk.
But his own book, The Headspace Guide to Meditation and Mindfulness, is itself a really good introduction to meditation. As Bill Gates puts it on his book blog, "If you want to try meditation for yourself, one good way to ease into it—especially if you’re as skeptical as I was—is to pick up a copy of Andy’s book, The Headspace Guide to Meditation and Mindfulness. Andy’s a witty storyteller and offers lots of helpful metaphors to explain potentially tricky concepts, which makes the book an easy, enjoyable read."
Interviews with Andy Puddicombe
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1
Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind: Informal Talks on Zen Meditation and Practice
by Shunryu Suzuki -
2
The Life of Milarepa
Translated by Lobsang P Lhalungpa -
3
Cutting Through Spiritual Materialism
by Chogyam Trungpa -
4
The Bodhicaryāvatāra
by Śāntideva -
5
One Robe, One Bowl: The Zen Poetry of Ryōkan
by Ryōkan
Meditation Books, recommended by Andy Puddicombe
Meditation Books, recommended by Andy Puddicombe
Two decades ago Andy Puddicombe was ordained as a Buddhist monk. Now back in lay life, he tries to teach the benefits of meditation to the rest of us—most notably through the Headspace app, but also by writing books. Here he chooses some of the books that inspired him, from Japanese poetry to Tibetan philosophy. Not all are meditation books but they are his “old favorites.”
